11th District Challenger Stumps in Synagogue

Douglas Herbert, the Democratic challenger for the 11th Congressional District, which includes Bernards Twp., said he would work to combat unemployment, invest in education and reduce the deficit during a speech he gave Saturday at Congregation Agudath Israel in Caldwell.

Herbert, a Chatham Borough resident and an attorney who practices in Brooklyn, faces eight-term incumbent U.S. Rep. Rodney Frelinghuysen, in November's election.

Herbert, 49, spoke of the numerous challenges facing Americans, including the recession, high unemployment rates due to the recession and a crisis in confidence among young people.

"Our leadership must provide a vision for the future," he said during Saturday services at the synogogue. "We must renew our agreement with future generations to train and educate them to compete in the global market."

Herbert is a graduate of Seton Hall Law School and attended Columbia University at night after serving in the U.S. Army. He said he understands what it's like to have struggled and persevered and he encouraged others not to give up hope during the economic recession.

"Right now Americans across this country are going through some tough times," he said. "They're facing unprecedented economic challenges. New Jerseyans are shouldering an overwhelming burden."

He said he advocates for short-term relief for those suffering from the recession, but believes long-term solutions include investing in clean energy, promoting job creation and reducing the national deficit.

Herbert said he supports investing in education to make Americans more competitive in the global market. He also applauded early childhood education programs and complimented the synagogue for it's commitment to its nursery school.

Herbert said he also wanted state residents to get to know him better. He outlined his upbringing in the midwest and said he met his wife, Marcy Wecker, while they were both college students. Herbert said they have three children and are respectful of both his Christian faith and his wife's Jewish faith.

"We are all descendant from the same source, we all pray to the same God and we all strive to provide our children with greater opportunity than we ourselves had," he said.

Herbert was introduced by Rabbi Alan Silverstein, who noted that the synagogue also hosted a visit from Frelinghuysen a couple of months ago. After his remarks and the Saturday services, Herbert and his wife joined members of the congregation for a meal at at the synagogue's social hall.

The 11th Congressional District has 58 municipalities from five counties, including Bernards Twp., part of Bridgewater Township, Raritan, and Somerville.

The district was previously centered in Essex County and was a Democratic stronghold, but after redistricting in the 1980s centered the district in Morris County, it has become a traditionally Republican Congressional District where Frelinghuysen has been re-elected handily for eight terms.